idiot friends have been betting on whether or not we’re dating.”
“Ah.” Thea nods. “And I’m assuming you had money on we were and now you need proof to collect?”
“Precisely.”
“What’s the pot?”
“Three hundred.”
“You guys bet a hundred bucks each on your friend’s relationship status?” She laughs. “Fine. I’ll go and I’ll tell everyone Sully and I have been secretly dating for weeks, but I want half of the winnings.”
“Half? You’re nuts. Sixty-forty split.”
“Half.”
“Fifty-five forty-five.”
“Half,” Thea says again, not backing down.
“Fucking hell,” Winston gripes. “Deal.”
They shake on it—because I’m pretty sure Porter’s rules for business are starting to rub off on all of us—and then Winston hitches his thumb over his shoulder.
“I’ll let you guys get back to…well, rockin’ the boat. I’ll see you Saturday night, usual time.”
“I’ll be there with the goods.”
“I swear, if Porter or Foster break out the tequila and get naked again…”
“We need to sew them into their clothes,” I suggest.
“No shit. Later, man.”
With a wave, Winston lets himself out.
I turn back to the finished coffee, removing the full cup and repeating the process with one for myself.
Thea stares after him for a moment, then turns to me. “Wait—let me get this straight. They’re just gonna be hangin’ dong at this party?”
“Porter and Foster tend to get a little carried away when we break out the tequila. Clothes usually come off, and one of them ends up naked in the ocean or streaking down the road.”
“Huh,” she says, reaching for the mug I’m holding her way. “He should have led with that. I’d have definitely gone sixty-forty just to see that shit.”
I drop my head into my hand. “Jesus, Thea.”
“I’m kidding, I’m kidding.” She laughs, setting the coffee mug on the counter next to me.
Rising onto her tiptoes, she plasters herself against me, bringing her lips to my jaw and peppering it with kisses. I lean into her touch, reveling in the feel of her mouth on me. Despite our rounds last night and this morning, my cock isn’t feeling so spent anymore, springing back to life. There’s no way she doesn’t feel it pressed against her as she kisses her way to my ear, tracing the shell and dragging the lobe between her teeth.
“Don’t worry, Sully,” she whispers, my name sounding like the best thing I’ve ever heard. “Yours is the only one I want to see.”
Thea drops to her knees, and I’m a fucking goner.
Slice Fifteen
Thea
We’re gonna leap.
Sully’s words have been on repeat in my head all week as we’ve taken the leap again and again…and again.
It’s just sex. Our evenings were already intertwined together before we broke the rules, but now we’re just spending them a little more horizontal.
Try as I might, I can’t not think about what all this means for after he’s fulfilled his fake boyfriend duties.
Being together is so easy, so natural. Why does it feel like he’s everything I’ve been missing, especially when he wasn’t supposed to mean anything at all?
My mind is so occupied with trying to find elusive answers, and I can’t sleep for shit. Because of that, for the first time ever, I was late to work this morning, which is extra pitiful because I live right next to the shop.
I’m trying not to obsess over it, but my thoughts won’t stop racing.
Because what if this does mean something? And worse, what if it’s nothing?
Nothing is easier.
Something is scary…but it doesn’t sound as bad as it once did.
Even so, until I can get my own conflicted feelings figured out, I’m keeping my mouth shut. No sense in screwing up what’s working, right?
“Hey,” Sully calls down to me as I walk onto the deck of his boat. “How was work?”
“Busy,” I tell him, skipping over my tardiness. “I need sweets. And maybe a drink.”
“Sweets I can do. I stocked back up on pudding since someone ate all of it, but you’re shit out of luck on beer. I just drank the last one.”
I make my way around, coming up on the stern and climbing the stairs to the top deck. Sully has his legs stretched out in front of him, kicked back in a lounge chair with his laptop on his legs and a beer in hand.
“Long day for you too?” I’ve learned he’s not much of a drinker but will have a beer or two when it’s been a stressful day.
He squeezes the back of his neck, then adjusts his ball cap on his head like he’s done a million times before. “I’m just ready to be done